Never Really Lost
by zombieslayer5
Summary: When Mary Jane's mother leaves her behind in the Dixon's brothers care without their consent, neither man is sure what to do. Then they catch word of a fatal disease that's spreading like wild fire across the country, and possbily the world. (AU, Rated T for mature language and mentions of abuse and other adult situations. no romance)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: So I decided I really need to buckle down and write a multi chapter that I'm not going to give up on. So, I'M NOT GIVING UP THIS ONE, lol. It's AU (I know, another one. But oh well, lol) It's starts no ZA, but will probably end up going into that. No romantic pairings in this story, at least not for a while, and even then it will not be with an OC. DISCLAIMER: nothing, zip, zero, none. I own none of The Walking Dead.**

**Enjoy!**

Mary Jane could feel the music's vibrations pulsing through the door handle when she grabbed it. She took a deep breath, a small white cloud escaping her mouth as she exhaled, and pushed it open. Mama had told her to stay out in the yard, but the cool night air of early May was getting to her and starting to freeze her butt off.

Mary Jane was greeted by a swarm of people milling about; most drinking, some dancing, and some yelling over the loud music. The ten year old wiggled her way into the sea of bodies, squinting to allow her eyes to adjust to the dim light.

She had never been in this house before, that she was sure of. Her eyes darted around, trying to spot her mama's teased up, fire truck red hair. Someone jabbed her with their elbow and she stumbled to the side, working to regain her balance while avoiding the suspicious orangy puddle on the carpet.

Mary Jane found her way to the kitchen, where she spied her mama in the corner, sitting atop the counter while a man leaned on it and talked to her. The man was tall and bulky, with broad shoulders and close cropped hair. She watched as her mama laughed at everything the man said, her cherry red lips curling into a big fake smile. That smile was different than the one her mama used with her woman friends. She got closer so she could hear the man's voice; it was deep and gravelly, she didn't like it.

"Mama," Mary Jane cupped her hands around her mouth, trying to scream over the music.

Her mama twirled her red hair around her bony fingers, seeming to not even hear her.

Mary Jane got closer, tapping her mama on the leg. Her mama looked down, narrowing her eyes as if she couldn't believe her own daughter was standing in front of her. She tossed the burly looking man an apologetic and slightly annoyed looked before hopping off the counter with a muttered, "'Cuse me."

Mama grabbed a fistful of Mary Jane's tangled brown hair and yanked her back towards the door. "Told you to keep your ass outside" she said sharply, giving Mary Jane's hair one more good pull before pushing her out the front door, "Go."

Then the door slammed shut.

Mary Jane turned out to face the darkness, missing a step on the splintery wooden porch she faltered, tumbling down the stairs and landing hard on her left leg. She whimpered as something popped and pain exploded in her ankle like fireworks. Tears pricked her eyes and she grasped her ankle, rocking slightly back and forth on the ground.

Suddenly a large hand loomed above her; she looked and saw a tall figure standing over her, it's arm outstretched. She released one hand from her ankle and reached for the hand above her. In second she was upright again, balancing on one foot as the figure released her.

"Ain't no place for a kid," the person said in a rumbling voice, "go find yer mama."

Mary Jane squinted her eyes to make out the man in front of her, "She's in there." Mary Jane pointed to the house before grabbing the porch's railing and taking a seat on the bottom step, wincing as a sliver of wood poked her bottom.

The man lit a cigarette, plopping down on the other end of the step with a grunt. The tip of his cigarette glowed and Mary Jane could faintly see his face now; narrowed blue eyes and a stubble covered chin. He exhaled, swirls of smoke curling in the air. He dropped his hand to the side, flicking some of the left over ash onto the ground.

Mary Jane leaned her head on the railing and silently shivered, closing her eyes. She wondered when her mama would pick up a new man friend so they could leave.

Minutes upon minutes passed and the man eventually stubbed out his cigarette, never looking her way. She glanced at him a few times, but he was too busy picking at the holes in the knee of his pants, biting his thumbnail; appearing to do anything to avoid her gaze. He seemed anxious though, constantly bouncing his leg up and down or drumming his fingers across the wood.

The door swung open with a squeak and both looked back to see who it was.

It was her mama and that man; her mama's hand gripping the man's bicep, her painted fingernails digging in as she leaned heavily on him. The man had a small smirk on his face, his eyes twinkling with something Mary Jane didn't quite understand,

"Come on, baby bro," he said to the man on the step, "Time ta go home."

The man on the step got up, letting the other man and her mama come down the stairs. Her mama giggled loudly as they started to walk away, "Let's go, Mary Jane." she said amidst her obnoxious giggles.

Mary Jane pulled herself up, hopping a little ways on one foot before starting to get wobbly. The pain in her left ankle had gave way to numbness awhile ago, making most of her body shake involuntarily. Suddenly the blue eyed man was there again, grabbing her upper arm firmly to steady her. He squeezed a bit tight, but Mary Jane was too tired and knew better than to complain as he helped her hobble to a rusty dark blue pickup truck that blended in with the night. The four of them squished into the truck, the man from the stairs in the driver's seat.

He turned the truck on and it sputtered to life, the ceiling light turning on. Mary Jane could see everyone clearly now. The man from the stairs was much younger looking than her mama's new man friend; with longish brown hair opposed to the close cropped salt and pepper the other man had, and a much younger face. Both mans' shirts were free of sleeves.

Once they were on the road Mary Jane closed her eyes, leaning her head back on the torn up upholstery. She could hear whispers as sleep seeped into her mind,

"Yer drunk, Merle."

"So?"

"Maybe ya shouldn't-"

"Just lemme take care of her right, little brother. Jus' 'cause yer too pussy don't mean I am."

**So yep, that's the first chapter. Not very long, I know. I hope you still enjoyed, though! Oh and I forgot to mention, I don't have a beta, so all mistakes are mine! I read over this multiple times, but there's bound to still be a few mistakes hiding in there... I hope to have the next chapter up in a couple days... emphasizing I HOPE. Lol, thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Wow, sorry guys, I didn't expect this chapter to be so late. School started up and everything just fell flat, lol. Well anyways, I just wanted to say thanks for the support and feedback you guys gave me on the first chapter and I hope you enjoy this one. :) for Disclaimer see chapter one. All mistakes are mine!**

The noise down the hall escalated and the man next to her blushed even more. Mary Jane shifted on the couch's worn and itchy upholstery, sitting Indian style while minding her ankle. Even though more sounds filtered from the bedroom down the hall, an overwhelming silence seemed to have developed between her and the man on the other side of the couch, and she felt the need to say something, _anything,_to break that silence.

"So, um, what's your name?" she asked, turning to look at the man.

He looked up briefly, "Daryl," he answered quickly before ducking his head once more.

"Oh," she said, "Well, I'm Mary Jane."

The man grunted, giving a single stiff nod.

Mary Jane looked around the living room. There was no TV, but a radio sitting on a coffee table crowded with trash. The coffee table, couch, and a recliner were the only furniture in the room besides a small ceiling fan with a dim light. She yawned, fighting to keep her eyes open.

Daryl noticed the girl yawn, and it reminded him how tired he was. Suddenly, his eyelids felt too heavy. He wondered how late it actually was, they had left the party around one in the morning, so he guessed it had to be at least two.

A ratty blanket was thrown her way and the light was turned out, and she looked up just in time to see Daryl leave the room without a word.

/page break/

The next morning Daryl rolled out of bed and trudged into the kitchen, fixing himself a cup of coffee before the sun even came up. Today would be a good day to hunt and he wanted to get a headstart.

He walked into the living room and almost spilled his coffee on the floor.

A little girl was curled up on the couch, sleeping soundly as if it was her own house. Daryl had to force himself to not run down the hall to Merle's room. Instead he crept quietly as not to wake the sleeping child.

"Merle," Daryl rapped his knuckles on his brother's bedroom door.

No answer.

"MERLE," Daryl tried to stay quiet, pounding on the door just a bit louder.

"What th' fuck?" came his raspy response, "Get yer panties outta yer ass, bro."

Daryl groaned, swinging the door open and preparing to cover his eyes. But the sight before him was not his brother and a woman, but his brother laying in bed alone, his arm covering his eyes.

Daryl felt panic set in his chest, "Where is she?"

Merle peeked out from under his forearm, "Who?"

"That lady!" Daryl almost yelled.

Merle gave a filthy little chuckle, immediately grabbing his throbbing head, "Ya got yerself all worked up, don't ya? She left last night." he paused, "Why? Finally decided to pop that cherry?"

"She left her kid, Merle!" Daryl _was_ yelling now, fidgeting like a three year old in dire need of a bathroom break.

Merle shot up like a rocket, "the fuck?" Merle didn't even remember a kid.

Daryl nodded furiously, pacing around the room, "Go see fir yerself."

Daryl followed his brother down the hall and through the kitchen, stopping in the doorway to the living room. The girl was awake now, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. She paused when she saw them.

"Where's my mama?" she asked, looking at them.

Daryl eyed Merle, silently urging him to say something.

Merle shrugged, "She ain't 'ere."

Daryl elbowed him, "What?" Merle asked innocently, "She ain't. She left 'er."

Mary Jane's eyes widen, "Huh?" her mama left? No, she wouldn't have done that.

"She gone, girly." Merle dead-panned.

Mary Jane felt her stomach drop. Her mama left her here? With strangers? It couldn't be true. Her mama had dragged her lots of places, but she had never forgot her.

Maybe that was it. Maybe she had just forgot her. Maybe she had realized and was coming back. How could she not realize it?

"Imma go down to Will's," Merle said, turning to go back down to his bedroom for his shoes, "need some more powder."

"No," Daryl objected, "Ya brought her mama home. This here is yer problem."

Merle looked at his brother, "How's it my problem? Ain't my fault her mama left 'er."

Mary Jane spoke up, "Where'd she go?" she asked, "She's coming back, right?"

All eyes were on Merle, "Hell if I know." he shrugged, pushing past Daryl and going to his bedroom. Seconds later he came lumbering back into the living room, pausing at the door,

"Wha's yer name, kid?" he asked.

"Mary Jane," she responded quietly.

Merle shook his head, "Too long,"he said,"It's MJ now." and then he left.

Daryl groaned, looking at the kid that had suddenly become his responcibility against his own will.

So much for hunting today.

**This chapter is kinda short, too. Oh well. It's helped me avoid homework for long enough. Hopefully the next chapter won't be as much of a wait. Hope you liked! Next chapter should be more eventful. **


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thanks for the support guys! It's really keeping me motivated, even if it doesn't seem like it, haha :) School's dumping on me (But let's face it, school dumps on everybody) anyways, here's the next chapter! I don't know how I feel about this one, it seems kinda rushed to me. I hope you guys like anyway. **

Merle capped his pill bottles, stuffing them in a plastic bag, "Like cannibals or some shit?"

"Yeah," Will nodded, ""S some fucked up shit, man."

"_Bullshit_ is what it is," Merle snorted. Sure, he had heard the reports on the radio. But those news folks had their ways of blowing shit way out of proportion. It was probably just a new strain of the fucking flu.

""S true!" Will defended, brushing some powder off the corner of his nose.

Merle grunted, he had known Will for a long time, since before the pair had dropped out of high school together their freshman year. And, he knew Will had a bad habit of over exaggerating.

"Listen man," Will said, his voice suddenly lowering to a whisper, "I'm gonna tell ya somethin', but ya gotta keep it ta yer fuckin' self."

Merle rolled his eyes, "What?"

Will looked around the kitchen as if making sure no one was around to hear; Will lived alone.

"Spit it out," Merle cuffed him in the side of the head.

"Ok," Will said, rubbing his head, "So I went down to Paulie's yesterday, 'member him?"

"Yeah," Paulie was the one who had sold Merle his first motorcycle; the Triumph he still had today. Paulie had known Merle didn't have much cash and made him a sweet deal, one hundred bucks and working for him for two weeks. Merle accepted the deal, and that was that. It was one of the few honest deals Merle had made in his thirty five years of life. Paulie was alright by him.

"Well I needed some spare parts, so I went to see him," Will explained, "But when I got there, Paulie didn't seem right."

Merle cocked an eyebrow, "Wha' ya mean?"

Will swallowed, "I dunno man," he shook his head, "He was all pale and shit, and he... tried to bite me." Will brought his arm up to show Merle a mark on his arm.

Merle inspected the mark; it was a long line, almost like a scratch. Real red and puffy, with a purple tint around the edges.

"He scratched me, man," Will's voice shifted, "I ran like a bat outta hell and left him there. Haven't gone back since."

Merle's brow furrowed. Was Paulie sick? Were those reports on the radio right?... No, they had to be bullshit. Will had probably just got too buzzed and scratched himself up. He probably hadn't even gone to see Paulie. Besides, what kind of virus made people go cannibal? Like fucking zombies? Hell no, wasn't possible.

/Page Break/

"Thanks for the ice," Mary Jane said, laying the the bag of ice across her ankle.

Daryl nodded stiffly, not looking at her. His attention was directed out the window, into the swells of darkness. Where was Merle? He had been gone all day.

"Daryl?"

Daryl internally groaned, kids were a pain in the ass, especially this one. Never kept her trap shut. Damn his brother for sticking her with him all day.

He turned to face her, "What?"

"I'm hungry," May Jane stated sheepishly. This had been so for a while now, but it had been a matter of working up the nerve to ask. It wasn't her place to ask a stranger for food, after all.

Daryl hadn't even thought about eating; until now. Now, he realized by the rumble of his stomach that he was starving as well.

Daryl went into the kitchen and searched the fridge. Beer, that was pretty much it. The freezer had some deer, but that would take too long to make.

This scavenger hunt for quick snacks brought him into the depths of the cabinets, a place he rarely visited since he had learned to hunt.

The only edible thing he could find was a box of Lucky Charms way past their expiration date. They were probably just a little stale though, he figured, boxed shit lasted forever.

He didn't have any milk, but these would have to do. He poured two heaping servings into semi clean bowls; no spoons though, why dirty more dishes when you got two hands that aren't broken?

He handed her a bowl and retreated to the recliner on the other side of the room. He had already shoveled two handfuls into his mouth when he noticed the girl hadn't even touched hers.

"Ain't ya gonna eat?" he asked.

Mary Jane looked at him quizzically, "There's no milk."

"I know," Daryl said, scooping another handful into his mouth, "Makes it finger food." The marshmallows were a bit chewier than they should've been, but Daryl didn't seen anything wrong with them.

Mary Jane shrugged, putting a few pieces in her mouth. It wasn't bad, she liked milk with her cereal, but she supposed beggers couldn't be choosers.

/page break/

Merle hated himself for getting spooked like this. But, on the way home from Will's, he had talked himself on checking up on Paulie. He felt like such a pussy, but he had to make sure Will was just talking shit.

Paulie was a mechanic, running a small garage out of the back of his house. He carried spare parts and did small jobs with fix 'er uppers. Paulie wasn't a young guy, his hair had been going white and he had been walking around with a cane when Merle was just a kid. Merle couldn't imagine Paulie trying to bite anyone. Whacking them with his cane, maybe, at the most. Paulie was more the type to fight with words. Two minutes with Paulie and he'd be able to talk some sense into you. During his teen years, Merle had visited Paulie more times then he cared to admit.

Merle rapped on the door with his knuckles. No answer, but he found it unlocked. That was definitely unusual; Paulie collected crap from the scrap yards, and he was always paranoid someone would try and steal what he found.

"Paulie," Merle called out, inviting himself in to Paulie's living room.

The house was mostly dark, except for a little light coming from the bedroom. Even in the dark Merle could navigate his way through Paulie's house well, since their houses were set up pretty much the same.

He switched on the light when shuffling footsteps greeted him in the hallway,

"Paulie?" Merle asked, looking at his friend.

But, Paulie seemed to have no recollection of him, not greeting him in any way as he walked closer to him.

Merle cocked his head to the side. Something was off, "Paulie." Merle repeated, louder this time, squinting at the man. The clothes were Paulie, his usual overralls, and the build of the body. But his face, something about his face was wrong... His eyes. Merle searched his eyes, but all that stared back at him was glazed over milky white, not the usual understanding dark brown Merle had come to know as Paulie's stare.

And then Paulie let out a sound, a gurgling shriek Merle had never heard, and lunged at him.

**I still think it feels kinda rushed... Oh well, I might come back and make some changes. But for now I hope you enjoyed anyway! **


	4. Author's Note: hiatus

**Author's Note:**

**It's been awhile, hasn't it guys?**

**I'm sorry to say that this isn't a chapter, it's more of a notice of 'vacation'. I will be going on hiatus (Temporary of course! I could never abandon FFN completely).**

**I can't simply chalk this up to not having enough time to write, (I have things to do during the day, but everyone does. I'm not 'overbooked' by any means). My muse for this story is dead. Gone. It decided it was going to pack it's bags and take a vacation, so I guess, until it comes back, I will be taking one as well. **

**And though I'm not 'overbooked', I do have some things to do. I haven't been able to read any FFN lately, and as saddening as that is for me, it's life. I'll be back though, when things are less crazy, and I'll catch up on everything. Reading and, hopefully, writing. **

**I'm so sorry I haven't posted, but like I said, my inspiration for this story has disappeared. I will hopefully be back sometime in December around the holidays, when I have some time off school. Thank you all for your support and patience :) **

**Note for Summer: I'm sorry I haven't gotten back to you on that beta thing! I would love to start that with you when I return if you're still up to it. :) **

**Note for Boo: Boo! I've missed you! I'm so so so sorry I haven't messaged you back. I promise I will as soon as I get back. I was actually thinking about you the other day, when I was watching my friend's little brother. He and I were having a Nerf gun war and I could picture you yelling, "You'll never take the prison!" haha :) I love you, fangirl sister. Talk to you later :) **

**With love for my fellow dead addicts, **

**Sammi :) **

**P.S. Please excuse any spelling/grammar errors. I wrote this kinda fast**


	5. TAKE 2

**AUTHOR'S NOTE TAKE 2: **

**my dear fellow walking dead fans! I missed you soooo much. Alrighty, let's get down to business:**

**First off, I don't know if any of people following this story are still interested, or if they're even still around.**

**Secondly, I am wiping this story clean and starting over. I know what I said; I wouldn't give up on this. But I promise I'm not giving up! I'm just re-vamping this story... I guess that's as good a word choice as I can come up with. **

**So, I will be rewriting this story, and making a few minor changes. I promise nothing too drastic; if anyone is even still interested in this story. It might have a different title, and most likely a different summary. I hope that you will check it out if you're still interested. It's okay if you're not, I completely understand. **

**But basically to sum it all up: I'm so happy to be back and I'm gonna try to start writing again, and most definitely reading. I'm so excited to catch up on the wonderful fics that were written while I was gone! :) **

**Hugs and love to all,**

**Sam **

**P.S. *******Spoilers for Season 4************* WHAT IS UP WITH RICK?! Leavin' Carol like that... It ruins the marvelous ship that is CARYL. :( lol All I gotta say is that Daryl better go find her, or she better get her ass back to the prison! Either way they just need to be together again. Alright: End rant. **


	6. 3x the charm

**The will be the final note; this story is officially closed.**

_**Savannah'sAngels**_** gave me a wonderful suggestion that I should put this note here to inform everyone that my re-take on this story is up and going. It's called Pass It On and I hope you'll check it out :) **


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